Kirkwood Observatory

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kirkwood Observatory
Organization	Indiana University
Location	Bloomington, Indiana
Coordinates	39°09′57″N, 86°31′33″W
Altitude	243.84 meters (800 feet)
Webpage	[1]
Telescopes
Warner & Swasey Refracting Telescope	0.3 meter / 12 inch
Solar telescope	heliostat, spectrograph, Digital hydrogen-alpha imaging

Kirkwood Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Indiana University. It is located in Bloomington, Indiana (USA). It is named for Daniel Kirkwood (1814 - 1895) an astronomer and professor of mathematics at Indiana University who discovered the divisions of the asteroid belt known as the Kirkwood Gaps.

Built in 1900 and dedicated on May 15, 1901, the observatory was thoroughly renovated during the 2001-2002 academic year. Although the facility is no longer used for research, its original refracting telescope, built by Warner & Swasey Company with a 12-inch (.03m) Brashear objective lens, also received a complete restoration.

Directors

• John A. Miller (1901-1906)
• Wilbur A. Cogshall (1907-1944)
• Frank K. Edmondson (1944-1978)

Kirkwood Observatory also has an instructional solar telescope.

[edit] See also

• List of observatories

[edit] Reference

1. Kirkwood Observatory Homepage. Kirkwood Observatory. Retrieved on December 14, 2005.

[edit] External links

• Clear Sky Clock for Bloomington, Indiana
• Topographical map from TopoZone